A few months ago the stars aligned (literally, in a way) and the UK got a dose of the aurora borealis, commonly known as the northern lights. If you were one of the unlucky few who went to bed before the show and woke up to the most annoying string of Instagram stories you’ve ever seen, we have some good news: they might be coming back. And soon. Very soon, in fact.
It’s been a pretty good few months for astronomers in the UK. There were two stunning meteor showers in July, another in August, and the northern lights have made a few appearances in recent weeks. Despite the fact that they’re usually only seen in the north of Scotland and sometimes Ireland, they were seen as far south as London last time, so fingers crossed that trend continues for at least a little bit longer.
If you look up this weekend, provided we get clear skies, you might just get lucky. A huge solar flare was recorded by meteorologists earlier this week, which could mean aurora sightings as far down as the Midlands. We’ll keep our fingers crossed and our eyes peeled.
So how do you maximise your chances of catching them? Here’s everything you need to know about this weekend’s potential aurora borealis showcase.
What are the northern lights?
They are a complex interaction of solar energy, nitrogen, and oxygen, and the Earth’s magnetic field. Alternatively, in normal people terms, the sun releases massive beams of energy which hit our atmosphere and cause chemicals to react in such a way that the sky lights up with pretty purples, blues, greens, and pinks.
These colours are usually only seen in very northern parts of the world, like Scandinavia or the Arctic, hence their name.
How to see the northern lights in the UK
The advice from experts remains the same as always: try to get somewhere away from a city with minimal light pollution, give your eyes thirty minutes to adjust, and look towards the northern sky. Very fairytale-esque. The further north you can get the better, although there’s always the risk of driving to the top of Scotland and ending up with a cloudy evening.
This time, the lights are expected to hit most of Scotland and some of the north of England and Northern Ireland, however those areas are not currently forecasted to have brilliant weather, so we won’t know for sure the best place to be until tomorrow (October 11) or Saturday (October 12).
Keep an eye on the Aurorawatch Twitter/X feed; they’ll keep you updated on whether it’s a red alert (go outside and look up NOW!), or if it’s time to call it a night and head to sleep on both nights.
What’s the best time to see the aurora?
If they are going to make an appearance, the best time will be whenever the sky is darkest, usually around midnight or the early hours of the morning, but it’s definitely best to keep an eye on the weather app in case there’s going to be a particularly clear hour or two.
When will the northern lights be visible again?
The lights are expected to hit most of Scotland and some of the north of England and Northern Ireland, however those areas are not currently forecasted to have brilliant weather, so we won’t know for sure the best place to be until tomorrow (October 11) or Saturday (October 12).
Unfortunately we cannot predict the ways of the stars. Meteorologists can though, and they think that the next few months could be big for fans of the northern lights, as the sun is approaching its ‘solar maximum’, which means it will be at its most active point in the past eleven years. This could mean big geomagnetic pulses and more borealis – so keep watching the news for the most up to date information.
If you don’t want to wait around until they next appear over the UK, plan a break to one of these places which are the best on Earth for viewing the northern lights.
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